Diabetes ECHO
TRAINING AND SUPPORT FOR DIABETES MANAGEMENT PROFESSIONALS

Diabetes ECHO is designed to provide a consultative link between specialists and community clinicians throughout the state via videoconferencing technology. Its goal is to provide consultations through case review of patients living with diabetes and to train primary care clinicians to become experts in the care and management of diabetes and diabetes-related conditions so that patients can receive timely treatment in their own communities. The ECHO model develops knowledge and capacity amongst community-based providers through the use of technology to leverage scarce resources, sharing of best practices to reduce disparities, using case-based learning to master complexity and monitoring outcomes using a web-based database.
ECHO functions on a “hub and spoke” model with an interdisciplinary, team-based approach. For this Diabetes ECHO, Well-Ahead Louisiana will serve as the “hub” of specialists, including an Endocrinologist, an Internal Medicine Physician, a Certified Diabetes Educator, a Nurse Practitioner, and a Cardiologist and a Podiatrist (rotating).
The scheduled ECHO clinics function like virtual grand rounds via real-time, interactive videoconferencing, using the platform Zoom. During ECHO sessions, providers present de-identified patient cases to expert teams who mentor the learners to manage patients with complex conditions.
Sessions will be held every other week for one hour. Physicians, nurses, and pharmacists are able to obtain CEU credits for participation in Diabetes ECHO sessions. Once you have registered, a Diabetes ECHO staff member will reach out to you with more information.
Applications for the 2022 Diabetes ECHO Cohort closed on January 7, 2022.
Benefits of Participation
Individual Participants
- Participation in supportive Community of Practice
- Best practice sharing with specialists and peers
- FREE professional continuing education credits (physicians, nurses, and pharmacists)
- Education on variety of diabetes-related topics
- Expansion of diabetes treatment capacity
- Enhanced clinical skills and competencies to practice at the top of license
- Increased confidence in treating patients with diabetes
Participating Clinics
- Increased provider satisfaction
- Increased provider productivity
- Increased provider motivation and resilience to practice in rural communities
Patients of Participating Clinics
- Improved outcomes
- Improved quality and safety
- Improved condition-specific measures (e.g., HgA1c, blood pressures)
- Decreased mortality
- Mitigated future interventions
- Reduced treatment-related complications
- Ability to stay in local community and receive treatment from local/primary healthcare providers
What to Expect
Structure of an ECHO Session:
- Introductions
- Case Presentation
- Recommendations
- Didactic Presentation
Participating clinics must:
- Allow and ensure at least one participant at clinic attends and actively engages in at least 50% of sessions (sessions will be held every two weeks beginning January 27, 2022)
- Allow and ensure participating provider(s) submit and present at least 1 patient case during the calendar year
Participating providers must:
- Complete two surveys to assess efficacy of the program: one pre-survey prior to the first session and one post-survey after the last session
- Providers who wish to receive CEUs will need to enter attendance and complete the post-session survey within 48 hours of the session to obtain credit for each session.
Read the Diabetes ECHO Participant Guide to learn more.
Submit a case presentation!
Meet the Hub Team

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Christine Castille, NP
Christine Castille is a Family Nurse Practitioner, board certified in Advanced Diabetes Management. Christine is passionate about partnering with healthcare providers, staff, and patients to reach quality healthcare goals. As a nurse practitioner and healthcare consultant, her career has included a focus on multiple aspects of diabetes and related conditions such as hypertension, renal disease, and obesity as well as working for and collaborating with payors and ACOs. Recently Christine’s passion for supporting healthcare providers, empowering patients and researching integral aspects of patient adherence has led her to work with VMS biomarketing.

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Anthony Decuir, Jr., DPM
Decuir was born and raised in New Orleans and attended Brother Martin High School and Xavier University of Louisiana. He attended Podiatry School in Chicago at the Dr. William M. Scholl College of Podiatric Medicine and received his Podiatric training at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. After practicing for one year in the New Orleans area, he moved to Baton Rouge, where he has practiced for the past eighteen years.

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Satish Gadi, MD
Dr. Satish Gadi is an interventional cardiologist who has been practicing in Baton Rouge since 2010. He did much of his training including residency, fellowship, etc. in New York and now works with the Cardiovascular Institute of the South which has been serving Southern Louisiana for 35 plus years. Dr. Gadi in addition to being a cardiologist, has a special interest in PAD–both diagnosis and management.

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Raven Jackson, PharmD
Raven Jackson has taught in several courses within the pharmacy curriculum including neurology therapeutics, interprofessional education, medication therapy management, point of care testing, professional practice and pharmacogenomics as well as an infectious disease point of care testing lab. As a component of her clinical position, Raven has also served as a preceptor for both advanced pharmacy practice experiences, introductory pharmacy practice experiences, and the ambulatory post graduate year 1 Pharmacy Residency program at West Jefferson Medical Center – The Family Doctor’s Clinic. She provided diabetes medication management and polypharmacy medication reconciliation services. She also provided med consults to the Surgical Center at West Jeff.

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Dragana Lovre, MD
Dr. Dragana Lovre is an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Tulane University School of Medicine (Section of Endocrinology), where she also completed her Clinical Endocrinology Fellowship. Dr. Lovre is board certified in internal medicine and endocrinology. Her clinical and research interests focus on cardiovascular complications of diabetes with special interest in women’s health and obesity. She is involved in “Diabetes is Primary Program” by the American Diabetes Association, which delivers easily accessible continuing education to meet the needs of busy primary care providers, and also clinical trials in diabetes at Tulane University.

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Vy Anh Mai, MD, MSc
Dr. Vy Anh Mai received a Bachelor of Arts in Biology and her Doctor of Medicine degree at the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine in Kansas City, Missouri. She also obtained a Master of Science in Clinical Research Methods degree at Tulane University School of Medicine. Dr. Mai joined the Section of General Internal Medicine as an Assistant Professor of Internal Medicine and Pediatrics in 2019. Dr. Mai practices primary care at Tulane’s Uptown Multispecialty Clinic and actively sees patients of all ages. She has an interest in academic medicine and supervises residents in the Internal Medicine/Pediatrics clinic.
Diabetes ECHO Schedule
Date | Topic | Presenter |
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July 14, 2022 | Diabetic Peripheral Neuropathy | Vivian Fonseca, MD Tulane University Chief of Endocrinology |
July 28, 2022 | Obesity & Metabolic Surgery Benefits and Risks For The Treatment Of Type 2 Diabetes | Emily Thevis, MBA, RDN, CSOWM, CDCES Physician Liaison Memorial Hermann Health System |
August 11, 2022 | Insulin Therapies | Robert Galagan, MD Assistant Professor of Medicine Tulane University School of Medicine |
August 25, 2022 | Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) | Sarah Wilson, MD Tulane University School of Medicine |
September 8, 2022 | CGMs and Insulin Pumps | TBD |
September 22, 2022 | Cultural Competency, Health Literacy and Numeracy in Diabetes Care | Christine Castille, FNP-C, BC-ADM, CDCES FNP / CDE Hub Specialist |
Date | Topic | Presenter |
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October 6, 2022 | Diabetes Self-Management Education | TBD |
October 20, 2022 | Diabetes Care In The Hospital | TBD |
November 3, 2022 | Diabetes In Pregnancy | TBD |
November 17, 2022 | Helping Patients Stay on Track During the Holidays | Christine Castille, FNP-C, BC-ADM, CDCES FNP / CDE Hub Specialist |
December 1, 2022 | Diabetes and End-of-Life Care | TBD |
December 15, 2022 | The National Diabetes Prevention Program | TBD |
December 29, 2022 | Diabetes Updates/End of the Year Review | TBD |
2022 Diabetes ECHO Sessions
- Session 1: What is ECHO?
- Session 2: Types of Diabetes: Causes, Identification, and More
- Session 3: Nutrition and Carb Counting
- Session 4: Knowing Your Audience: Hypoglycemia Management Individualized Treatment Goals
- Session 5: 2022 Diabetes Management Updates
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Session 6: Pharmacologic Therapy for Type 1 Diabetes
- Session 7: Type 2 Diabetes Guidelines and Comprehensive Treatment Plans
- Session 8: Cardiovascular Risks and Treatment Options
- Session 9: Diabetic Foot Care
- Session 10: Psychological Considerations of Obesity and Diabetes
- Session 11: Hypertension and Hyperlipidemia Management for Patients with Diabetes
2021 Diabetes ECHO Session Archives
- Session 1: What is ECHO?
- Session 2: Types of Diabetes: Causes, Identification, and More
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Session 3: Community Health Workers
- Session 4: Pharmacologic Therapy for Type 2 Diabetes
- Session 5: Pharmacologic Therapy for Type 1 Diabetes
- Session 6: Diabetes Guidelines in Your Office
- Session 7: Obesity Management for Type 2 Diabetes
- Session 8: Metabolic Surgery Benefits and Risks
- Session 9: Insulin Therapies
- Session 10: Know Your Audience
- Session 11: Hypoglycemia Management
- Session 12: Cardiovascular Risks and Treatment Options
- Session 13: Diabetic Foot Care
- Session 14: Diabetic Kidney Disease
- Session 15: Diabetic Peripheral Neuropathy
- Session 16: Obesity, Patient Engagement
- Session 17: Hypertension and Hyperlipidemia Management
- Session 18: Health Literacy and Numeracy in Diabetes Care
- Session 19: Diabetes Self-Management Education & Support
- Session 20: The National Diabetes Prevention Program
- Session 21: Managing Challenges Through the Holidays
- Session 22: Vaccine Recommendations in Diabetes
- Session 23: Diabetes Care in the Hospital
- Session 24: Diabetes in Pregnancy